By The activist left talks endlessly about compassion. But when advancing the cause becomes an excuse to destroy or deface what others hold sacred, that compassion starts looking awfully selective. At New York’s September 11 memorial, a gun control activist allegedly turned the names of murdered Americans into advertising space for his political campaign.
Jonathan Andrew Tijerina, 31, was arrested Monday afternoon after allegedly spray-painting “juststopkillingkids.com” in red across bronze panels at the memorial’s North Pool, according to Port Authority police. The panels bear the names of victims of the terrorist attacks, surrounding the reflecting pool that marks the footprint of the North Tower.
Earlier today, the 9/11 Memorial at Ground Zero in Manhattan was defaced with graffiti.
I wear on my wrist the names of over a hundred friends and colleagues who lost their lives in the attacks twenty five years ago.
1/2 pic.twitter.com/Kvs1Sc3ERg
— Thomas P. Sullivan (@Sully4Assembly) October 28, 2026
Police said surveillance cameras captured the vandalism around 5 p.m. A witness identified Tijerina, and officers arrested him within about a minute, according to reports.
Ed Duffy, a 16-year-old visitor from the United Kingdom, described the scene to CBS News New York. “I saw somebody with red spray paint, and they sprayed ‘just stop killing kids’ over some of the names. And then within, like, less than a minute, the police came and arrested him.”
Authorities put the damage at more than $2,550. Memorial employees quickly cleaned the panels, and officials said there was no permanent damage. That restoration spared the memorial lasting physical harm. It does nothing to excuse the decision to use the names of the dead as a political billboard.
Tijerina also recorded himself acknowledging what he had done. “My name is Jon Tijerina, and I just spray-painted stop killing kids on the 9/11 Memorial,” he said in a video, turning the camera toward the red lettering.
His website advocates stricter gun regulations, including universal background checks and mandatory registration of every firearm. It describes the campaign as “civil resistance.” He has also posted about a seven-day fast intended to pressure New York City to build millions of affordable housing units.
“Civil resistance” is a convenient label the left loves to use to justify doing whatever it is they want to do, including hijacking planes or terrorizing Jews on college campuses. The people whose names he allegedly painted over were civilians murdered in a terrorist attack. Their families did not volunteer their memorial for his publicity campaign.
Tijerina was awaiting arraignment on charges including criminal mischief, making graffiti, and possession of graffiti instruments.
The episode exposes the moral arrogance behind destructive political activism. A cause becomes so righteous in its advocate’s mind that ordinary obligations to other people disappear. Respect, restraint, even the names of terrorism victims become obstacles to getting attention.
A movement claiming to oppose violence should understand why a memorial to its victims deserves respect. When an activist left treats that memorial as a canvas for self-promotion, the language of compassion cannot conceal the contempt. No wonder the Democrats campaign with podcasters who say America deserved 9-11.
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